Competition to Trigger Explosion in Wholesale Local Service Operations Predict Analysts.

BURLINGTON, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 19, 1998--Local telecoms

service markets(1) still have enormous untapped commercial potential, according to new research from independent telecoms analyst group, Ovum Inc. In a new report, "Local Service Competition: Breaking the Bottleneck", Ovum foresees an explosion in wholesale local service operations.

According to Peter Falshaw, principal analyst with Ovum, "North America has over a thousand carriers offering local services. But to date, competitive local exchange carriers have had limited opportunity to wrest market share from incumbent local exchange carriers. For the most part they have been confined to providing access services to corporate customers in the central business districts of major cities."

Ovum cites the following obstacles preventing competitive local exchange carriers from expanding their existing businesses:

-- negotiating interconnect arrangements with incumbent local exchange carriers (ILECs)

-- obtaining access to ILEC operational support systems

-- achieving access to rights of way

-- negotiating building access

-- and the price of unbundled ILEC network elements

Falshaw continues, "Although the pace of change following the implementation of the 1996 Telecommunications Act has been slow, mainly due to legal wrangles, the case for broadly based local service competition in the US is overwhelming."

Ovum finds that effective local service competition requires operators to be able to choose between building infrastructure, obtaining unbundled network elements from incumbents, and local service resale. The challenge for regulators is to create a framework that will allow market forces to operate effectively.

According to the Ovum report, market convergence and globalization over the next ten years will rapidly blur the boundaries of discrete geographical or technologically defined markets. Ovum believes that local service operators will compete on the delivery of unique customer value. This will not be a static concept, but will require local service operators to continuously adapt to rising customer expectations. Global branding will be a major factor in reinforcing customer value perceptions in all market segments.

"Within the next ten years, the processes of market rationalization and the development of global scale economies in service development and operations will see the emergence of a small number of globally branded operators," adds Falshaw. "This includes the global brands being developed by carriers like AT&T, BT, C&W and MCI-Worldcom. Opportunities for implementing niche entry strategies will continue, but niche operators will come under increasing pressure from global brands and their local franchisees."

"For the first time, end-users will have a range of operator and service choices - and the ability to mix and match product and service offerings to their particular needs," concludes Falshaw. "The challenge for operators, both new and established, will be to create unique customer value through product and service innovation, and establish direct customer access."

Local Service Competition: Breaking the Bottleneck, is available immediately from Ovum Inc. and costs $3,695. The report examines strategies for new entrants into local service markets and provides details of defense strategies for incumbents. Authored by senior Ovum analysts Peter Falshaw and Jim Holmes, the report contains profiles of local service markets in 14 countries across North America, Europe, and the Asia Pacific.

Ovum is an independent telecommunications, new media and information technology analyst group, providing high quality, authoritative information and advice on key market, technical and regulatory developments. Ovum funds its own research and accepts no sponsorship from vendors or other interest groups. Ovum's customer base comprises leading blue-chip organizations including suppliers, users and policy makers worldwide. With offices in Boston, London and Melbourne, Ovum currently employs 170 staff.

(1)Ovum defines the local service market as the sum of access and local call markets.

Note to editors: A white paper on Local Service Competition: Breaking the Bottleneck is available to journalists free of charge. If you are a journalist and would like to receive more information, please contact Daniel Matkovits in the Ovum Inc. press office on email: [e-mail].